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Anyone stayed right on the hill (PC / Canyons / Alta, etc)? I've been out a bunch, but always with a large group so we've rented a house. I'm headed out in March with just a couple guys so we won't need a large rental this time around. Looking for a "reasonable" hotel with ski in / ski out.
I've never priced it but Park City has a chairlift in and out of their downtown area. I'm sure there are plenty of places to stay around it.
Every time I've gone I've stayed in Salt Lake City since we were jumping to different mountains every day.
Highly recommend Powder Mountain. It has the most skiable acreage of any resort in the US and is about an hour drive from SLC airport. The ski village is located at the top of the mountain and all of the condos are a short walk or directly ski out. Biggest benefit of the mountain top resort is if you're there during a storm (and already on top) then the road up closes and you have the mountain nearly to yourself. Lots of glades skiing, lots of Cat skiing (extra $) and a bunch of natural terrain. There's also quite a bit of chair up, brief hike to some high terrain, then fresh tracks down.
Downside is there isn't much in the way of nightlife unless you drive down the mountain to Eden. There is only one bar/restaurant open for dinner, they close at 8:30. We always stop there and grab groceries for the week (the grocery store sells discount lift tickets!) and usually only venture down to town for dinner 1 or 2 nights of 7. This doesn't really bother me much...I'm there to snowboard so I'm making laps from lift open to lift close...usually ready to go to bed by 9:00. We also usually ride over to Snow Basin for one of the days, it's about a 30 minute drive.
Really an awesome place to go spend a week. I haven't been since 2013, I understand they've built a bunch of new condos and added a couple of new chairlifts since then.
Didn't like Park City that much. It's a collection of mountains with lifts to traverse the canyons in-between. The conditions are great and there are lots of hotels, restaurants etc, but spending that much time traversing between mountains was kind of a buzz kill, even though the snow is terrific.
uhhhh, that sounds flippin awesomeQuote:
Originally Posted by loudbeard
It is a GREAT place to spend a week.Quote:
Originally Posted by xrocket21
I haven't been during March so I can't comment on what the snow conditions will be like, I haven't boarded the Wasatch at all that time of year. Social media feeds always looked promising though. Pre-kid life I used to do two trips per year with my Dad, his friend and friend's son. End of January was a rotating trip that landed us at Powder multiple times, Steamboat, Tahoe, and Taos. End of February we always went to Copper Mtn and would do 4 days there and 3 off mountain days (Breck, Beaver Creek, etc...) Powder is by far my favorite resort. You won't find (many) ski bunnies. The amenities are minimal, there are no big hotels. It's pretty much necessary to do almost all of your own cooking, unless you're fine eating chili and wings for a week. The condos I stayed at are pretty spartan. Simple kitchen and living room. Two bedrooms; one with a king, the second with two twins. The skiing is really amazing, particularly if you're up for a quick hike after a chair ride. The mountain is just a series of bowls with multiple peaks. Not all peaks are lift serviced but will funnel back down to a lift area.
Looking at the trail map my favorite area was Cobabe Canyon. The Mary's and Village lift didn't exist when I was there last. I'd ride Sunrise lift up, board down to the saddle, then take a 10 minute hike to the top of Cobabe. You can drop in either side, I'd like to ride the left ridge line down a ways, if you're patient about your drop in point there are always fresh tracks down. The steeps coming down into the bowl can vary from nice easy Blue (in knee deep powder) to some seriously sketchy double blacks hucking cliffs and shit.
Why not go somewhere you haven't been before? There are some awesome places out west that aren't in colorado utah or tahoe...
Big Sky and Utah this year for me. May have to try powder if it's on my pass
Because I have been to virtually every big mountain out west, but I am taking someone who has never been out west. Wasatch resorts have the best combo of reliable conditions and proximity to a major airport IMO.Quote:
Originally Posted by snwbrdr435
And it's cheaper. Limited ticket sales means never a line. They stop at 1500 tickets. And considering that it's the hugest resort in the USA when you including the "out of bounds" lift served. With the $ saved splurge on guide for a day.Quote:
Originally Posted by loudbeard
's
1500 people? That's like a private mountain.Quote:
Originally Posted by Rambunctous
You should read some articles on the Summit Group. A cousin of mine (who I've met once, at the mountain) is their "Director of Ambiance." That will give you an idea of what sort of group it is that bought this mountain and why yes, it is just like a private mountain. While the group who owns it are literally the definition of douchey millennial elitists, their mountain kicks ass.Quote:
Originally Posted by Paul_E_D
And yes, definitely splurge for a guide on day 1. They know where all the hidden powder stashes are even if it hasn't snowed for weeks.
I didn't know Park City and The Canyons merged in 2015. Freaking HUGE resort now, though given the layout of the two I can't imagine it's very easy getting from one end to the other. And it's $135 a day!! :scratchhead: